Process of desiccating potatoes.



@M1/wf l @momma No. 759,115. PATENTED MAY s, 1904.

111101101710, 11min. t. A. LAoKovIo, Annxsfrnl'ron. PROCESS 0F DESIGCATING POTATOES.

1 APPLIULTIOH FILED FEB. l, 1904. v1U) IODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1- IoloooIO V PATENTED MAY 3, 1904 T., LAGKUVIG, DECD. I. L. LAOKV, DIHBTBLTOB.

no MODEL.

la lROGESS 0F DESIGGATI-NG POTATOES.

APPLIDATIUN FILED FEBe 1, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET i UNITED 'STATES Patented May 3, 1904.

OF THERESE LACKOVIC, DECEASED.

PROCESS OF DESICOATING POTATOES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 759,115, dated May 3, 1904. Applicat'in filed February 1, 1904. Serial No. 191,622. (No specimens.)

To all r11/1,0m, it may con/cern.:

Beit known that il, MICHAEL AUGUST LAcKov10. a citizen of the United States of America, residing in the cit-y and county of Denver and State of Colorado, am the administrator of the estate of THERESE LAoKovIo, deceased, late a citizen of the United States; who was the inventor of certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Desiccating Potatoes; and lldo hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the said invention,

such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the saine, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

. The invention relates to a process of desiccating potatoes so that they may be kept for an unlimited time in any climate, While retain ingtheir nourishing and sweet-tasting qualities; and the objects ofthe invention are, Erst, to preserve potatoes by desiccation without the use of chemicals-orA other foreign 4substances in sucha manner that they not only will retain their nourishing and aromaticqualities for any length of time and in any climate,

but that at any time after soaking them in water for a certain period they may be utilized in any of the various Ways now in usein preparing the raw potatoes for the table, such as boiling, frying, mashing, &c.; second, to produce as an article of food desiccated potatoes having all the qualities of the raw roots, but which may be kept in any climate for an indeiinite time and so reduced in Weight that travelers when going on long voyages into remote and uncivilized countries may carry large quantities without having to burden themselves Withpunwieldy and heavy articles of transportation. These objects are obtained'by desiccating the potatoes in the following manner: The potatoes after having been cleaned,

pared, and relieved of so-caled eyes and other spots are cut into pieces of any shape or size and are placed in a vessel or tank which previously has been partly Vfilled with hot water. When all the potatoes have been immersed in the tank, the vessel is closed and -water is now allowed to boil for three consecu- MICHAFT- AUGUST LACKOVIC, OF DENVER, COLORADO, ADMINISTRATOR tive minutes, after which the heat is removed,

' main in the boiling water for more than three or four minutes the starch and sugar contained in the potatoes will be brought to a state whichdestr'oys the qualities it is my object to retain. llt is therefore essential that the boilingpwater should be drained very rapidly from the vessel the moment the allotted time has'elapsed,'and the cold waterv should be let into the vessel simultaneously, so as to prevent further boiling. For practically the same reason it has been found `impracticable to place the potatoes in the water unpared, as the time required for scalding them destroys their strength and sweetness. 1t will be observed-that the main object of this first part of theprocess is to scald, not to boil, the potatoes, for the purpose of destroying the poison contained in the potatoes when in a raw state and which prevents preservation for any length of time. When the potatoes are thor oughly cooled ofi', they are taken out of the tank and subjected to a temperature of from 80o to 90o Fahrenheit by placing them, not too thickly, on perforated tables or any other device which will allow the heat to completely surround the pieces of potato, and thus dry them evenly and quickly. Experience has taught that the best results are obtained by having the source of heat underneath the tableA on which the potatoes rest, thus allowing Athe heat to pass upward through the aper` tures in the tables. It is essential that during the drying process the temperature should not vary much from 8 0O to 90O Fahrenheit, for if the potatoes were placed in a lower temperature the process of drying would nite time.

When itis desired to` use the desiccated potatoes, they may be placed in hot water and soaked for about a half-hour. Gradually they will assume the appearance of the raw product before itwas scalded and dried, and when taken from the Water they may be mashed, sliced, or left Whole and prepared in any known manner, such as boiling, frying, &c. When eaten, it will be found that the potatoes are as nourishing and sweet-tasting as the'fresh product and they have lostnone of the qualities which have given the fresh roots the important place among the articles of food now in use.

Although any suitable apparatus may be employed in performing the process, use is preferably made of the device illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a vertical section of the device. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken along the line X X, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-section along line Z Z, Fig. 1.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the various' views.

A represents the vessel or tank .in which the potatoes are scalded. It consists of a hollow cylinder having a top A6 and a bottom A. A perforated partition B is secured on the inside of the cylinder parallel to the bottom .and in close-proximity thereto and acts as a support for the potatoes. The tank is supported by three or more legs A2, and the heat is supplied by means of a steam-pipe C, which 'presence of two witnesses.

in the' shape of a series' of coils lies underneath the partition B, through which it passes upward and after being coiled a number of times along the inside periphery of the tank A leaves same at C2. The inlet of the steam is at C. One or more faucets at the bottom of the tank are used for draining the het water, while the cold water may be made to iow on the scalded potatoes from-v any suitable source through a faucet A7 in the top'of the tank. The potatoes are taken from the tank through a door A5 and placed on a table E,

having anges E and supported by a bracket D. They are dried on the box-shaped table F, the top of which is composed of anumber of slats F', on which the scalded potatoes are placed. Y Y

F* is a perforated pipe located below the vslats F' in the lower ,portion Fs of the table for conducting the hot air necessary for drying the potatoes.

Having `thus described theinvention, what 1 is claimed is# l. The process of desiccating potatoes consisting in sealding the potatoes after -they have been cleaned, pared and divided in pieces, in boiling water for a period of from three to four minutes, thence rapidly draining oi the boiling water and cooling the potatoes by immersion in cold water and thence drying them by subjecting them toa temperature of from O to 90O Fahrenheit approximately, substantially as described.

2. A process of desiccating potatoes, consisting in boiling the potatoes a few minutes in water, separating them from the hot Water, cooling them by immersion in cold Water and then dryingthem, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I aiix my signature in MICHAEL AUGUST LACKovic, Administrator of the estate of ThereseLackoo'ic,

deceased.

Witnesses:

DENA NELSON, A. J. OBRIEN. 

